Martin Selmayr: Europe’s door is open to Turkey, for now

The EU’s door remains open to Turkey but it won’t stay that way for long, Martin Selmayr, the powerful chief of staff of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, said Monday.

Selmayr told a conference in Brussels that European politicians are increasingly turning away from Turkey, which is still officially a candidate for EU membership.

“The [political] change that is happening is a response to the change happening in Turkey,” he said. “Turkey has walked away with giant steps from the EU.”

However, he added: “The door is open, the hands remain stretched out [but] those that don’t want to work with us, they shouldn’t expect the hand to remain stretched out.”

Selmayr was responding to a statement made by Martin Schulz, leader of the German Social Democrats, in an election debate Sunday evening.

Schulz took aim at Chancellor Angela Merkel’s dealings with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, amid growing tension between Berlin and Ankara. A number of German citizens have been arrested in Turkey, and Ankara repeatedly refused to allow German lawmakers to visit troops stationed at bases in Turkey.

On Sunday, Schulz, a former president of the European Parliament, said that if he was elected chancellor, he would push to halt Turkey’s accession talks with the European Union.

Merkel has been more cautious in her stance on Turkey, in part because of the EU-Turkey refugee deal. However, Merkel is against an upgrade to a customs union between the EU and Ankara, something the European Commission is keen on.

“There’s no way talks for enhancing the [EU-Turkey] customs union will be an issue,” she said in Sunday’s debate.

In his speech on Monday, Selmayr criticized U.S. President Donald Trump, saying “in geopolitics, it is important to keep a cool head, not to make policy with Twitter messages, as we see in other parts of the world.”

According to Juncker’s head of cabinet, “We see something that’s an indirect effect of Mr. Trump: Capital comes to Europe, trade partners that walk away from Mr. Trump come to Europe.”

“In every problem there is an opportunity,” he added. “We shouldn’t be triumphant about this but we should recognize that Europe has something to offer.”

Drakes drum

Selmayer, an unelected assistant to another unelected politician , why should havhave a say in what happens? He should go back to making sure the bills are paid on time and that the money gets spend wisely…. oh no, that would be too much to bear. I wonder how many extra payments end up in his private slush fund, offshore and away from the grasp of the eu money men

Posted on 9/4/17 | 1:26 PM CET

Just saying

What a despicable unelected & ever increasing in size eurocrat

Posted on 9/4/17 | 2:11 PM CET

sgu66

He has a point; policy should not be made via twitter, though while he is at it, perhaps he should also mention leaks and put-downs in the media, or do they have a lesser effect than twitter and are therefore justified? But then again, perhaps it is just ok when the end product suits a certain perspective, just like everything else linked to the commission.

Posted on 9/4/17 | 2:24 PM CET

cos

The majority of Europeans donnot want Turkey within EU and thats a fact.
Why that guys of European Commission do they insist ?
anything to gain out of this ? …may a carpet ?

Posted on 9/4/17 | 3:03 PM CET

Vishnou

Doesn’t matter what this unknown civil servant says, whether he is Junker’s support or not. Joint the Institutions in 2004? Via which channels? Open competition or political nepotism? Turkey does not belong in the EU, for geographical and ideological reasons. Full stop.